Solar Power in Frontier & Emerging Markets

OUR SOLUTIONS

Off-grid | battery backed

Our off-grid systems use lithium ion batteries to store solar energy. They are suitable for locations where there is no electricity grid and generators are the only power source. Whilst eliminating generator noise and polution, off-grid systems also dramatically reduce your fuel and related logistics costs, as your fuel supply will last up to 20x longer than before. Off-grid systems can be designed to supply sufficient power to operate through anything from a few days to several weeks of bad weather without ever running out of solar energy. With off-grid systems your energy consumption will be 90% to 100% from solar energy.

Captive | hybrid & on-grid

Captive solar power systems deliver low cost solar electricity. These systems run in parallel to your electricity grid connection or your generators. Captive systems work best where the grid supply is stable or where you can always rely on your own generators. Captive systems never produce more power than you can consume. This is done to avoid exporting excess electricity to the grid or underloading your generators. Because of this, captive systems are best suited for businesses with continuous 7-day operations. With a captive system, we can replace up to 50% of your energy consumption with cheaper solar energy, thus cutting up to 50 % of your electricity or fuel bills each month.

Net-metering | on-grid

Net-metering means that we are allowed to produce excess solar power during the day and export it to the grid. This export is captured by your electricity meter and credited against your consumption, meaning you only pay for your net consumption after any power export. The systems run in parallel to the electricity grid just like captive systems, but their daytime output is not curtailed. With net-metering systems we can replace up to 100% of your energy consumption with solar energy at the same low rates as captive systems.

Choose your system

Here is a brief comparison of the three solar systems that Nvision offer:.

Off-grid

Captive

Net-metering

up-front cost

0 $

0 $

0 $

per kWh cost

lower than diesel

lower than diesel/grid

lower than grid

best for

remote sites

24/7 operations

net-metering countries

solar share

60% - 100%

up to 50%

up to 100%

needs grid / generator

no

yes

yes

stand alone supply

yes

no

no

OUR PROJECTS

Here are some of our operating solar power plants along with some of our current pipeline projects:

OUR CLIENTS

These are some of the clients receiving cleaner, cheaper solar power from Equator Energy.

OUR MARKETS

We are specialized in delivering solar solutions in emerging and frontier markets. These are some of the markets where solar power can add the most value. We thrive under the challenges these markets present.

We operate in remote locations, harsh environments, under regulatory restrictions and challenging security conditions. We deliver high end solar systems far beyond the reach of the grid. We manage the risks and opportunities of our markets and we taylor our solar solutions to them accordingly.

ABOUT US

Equator Energy is a joint venture of two companies, Maris and Nvision, which combined have over a decade of experience operating in Africa.

Nvision is a German owned and managed developer, installer and operator of solar power plants. Founded in 2007, they launched as a developer and EPC provider in Bulgaria, where they own and operate the country's largest commercial-scale roof-mounted solar plant. Having developed, permitted and sold 6MW of grid-tied solar plants globally, in 2014 they launched in Kenya, where they have realized projects in five countries so far. With over ten years experience in the solar EPC and development space, they provide the technical, engineering, and installation capabilities to Equator Energy.

Maris is a diversified investment holding company that operates in nine African markets, through 17 holdings, spread across 4 divisions. Its customers include numerous multinationals and it represents global brands including JCB, Parker and Kaiser. The group continues to expand its portfolio under the guidance of both its highly experienced board and executive management team, and will provide the initial financing, pipeline projects, and operational support to Equator Energy.

Our business is guided by a few simple but powerful concepts. Have a look at them below.

Energy that pays

Our solar energy solutions pay for themselves. They deliver energy that is cheaper than the energy you buy from the grid or get from your on-site generator. We guarantee this.
When you take over a solar plant, we make sure the investment pays off.

Energy that works

Our solar energy solutions are tested, reliable and secure. When we sell you energy, there is no investment and no risk for you. We undertake all investments, installation, maintenance and servicing work. When you take over a solar plant, it comes with comprehensive warranties and free lifetime monitoring by us.

Energy that fits

We design our solar plants to fit your needs. We offer solutions from simple grid-tied systems, through solar-diesel hybrid systems to fully autonomous off-grid systems. Our plants' peak-power output and total energy production are carefully matched to your needs and integrated on-site. We 'right-size' our plants, because we sell you kWh not kW.

Our promise to you

We help you reduce your energy expenses through clean, on-site solar production. We guarantee that our solar solutions will pay for themselves.

Our impact

Greenhouse gasses

Solar power contributes significantly to reducing CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions. In our markets solar power plants save from around 0.7 to well over 2.0 kg of CO2 per kWh depending on their application.

Water

Solar power does not require water. Where solar energy replaces energy from thermal power plants. A 400 kW solar power plant saves an average of 1 million liters of water every year.

Soil, air and noise

On a very immediate and local level, solar power plants, especially off-grid plants, directly improve the enviroment around them. Noise and air pollution by generators along with soil contamination from fuel and oil spillage are elimated and living conditions are often dramatically improved.

Partners

Maris Capital is a diversified investment holding company that operates in nine African markets, through 17 holdings, spread across 4 divisions. Its customers include numerous multinationals and it represents global brands including JCB, Parker and Kaiser. The group continues to expand its portfolio under the guidance of both its highly experienced board and executive management team, and will provide the initial financing, pipeline projects, and operational support to Equator Energy

Nvision Energy Ltd is a German owned and managed developer, installer and operator of solar power plants. Founded in 2007, they launched as a developer and EPC provider in Bulgaria, where they own and operate the country's largest commercial-scale roof-mounted solar plant. Having developed, permitted and sold 6MW of grid-tied solar plants globally, in 2014 they launched in Kenya, where they have designed, priced and offered 24MW of solar plants. With over ten years experience in the solar EPC and development space, they provide the technical, engineering, and installation capabilities to Equator Energy.

solar power is good for the environment and good for your bottom line

LEARN MORE

In this section we answer some of the most frequent questions that we hear from our future clients.

The answer is: most likely yes. We can offer cost-competitive solar solutions in almost all locations within our markets. There are, however, a number of technical details that we need to check. We do this as part of our free solar audit. For example, we need to review your current electricity consumption and how it varies throughout the day, week, month and year. We will also have to determine how much suitable space you have available for a solar power system and how complex the integration of the system will be at your site.

Once we have these details we prepare a preliminary design. If the result is positive, we make you a firm offer for buying or leasing the solar system from us.

The sunnier it is at a location, the higher your savings will be. Also, the more you rely on diesel for your electricity consumption, the higher your savings will be. Another factor is how simple or complex the integration of our solar system will be at your site.

We review all these and other factors during our solar audit. We then use them in our preliminary design to make you a firm offer with an exact solar rate and predictable savings.

With a regular grid-tied solar power system we can typically replace up to 50% of your current electricity consumption with cheaper, clean solar energy. The more of your electricity is consumed during the daytime, the higher the solar share will be.

With net-metering systems we replace anywhere between 50% and almost 100% of your energy consumption with solar energy. How much of your energy consumption can come from solar power depends on the net-metering regulations in your country.

Off-grid systems are usually designed to supply 90 - 100% of your energy needs with solar energy. These systems have a large amount of lithium ion battery storage capacity in order to get you through the night and even spells of bad weather.

This depends on whether net-metering is currently allowed in your country.

If not, we will design the solar power system as a captive system that never feeds electricity back into the public power grid. If it is allowed now, then you can feed our solar electricity back into the public grid and get paid for it.

If net-metering becomes an option in the future, we will let you know. We can then discuss expanding the solar power system, so that you generate additional solar electricity to sell it to the grid at a profit.

From the free solar audit it usually takes us less than two weeks to complete our preliminary design and make you a firm offer. Once the firm offer has been accepted and the solar agreement has been signed, we typically have your system shipped to your site and installed within around three to four months.

That means, best case, we can get you started on energy cost savings with one of our solar systems within around four months from when you first contact us.

Yes. Our solar agreements give you the option to purchase the solar power system from us whenever you like. The prices for this are clearly set out in the agrement. Once you purchase the system it becomes yours and you will not have to pay us anything for the solar energy anymore. This means that if you are interested in purchasing a solar power system, our solution gives you the option to 'test drive' the solar power plant at no risk first, while benefitting from the savings it generates for you in the meantime.

Our solar agreements come with a standard 20-year term for grid-tied and hybrid systems and a 10-year term for off-grid systems. For the whole term we guarantee you energy cost savings and we make sure that the solar system keeps on working smoothly. You also get the option to extend the term by 5 years twice.

Importantly, under our solar agreements you only pay for the energy you actually use. This means if your energy consumption drops during any part of the term, we will not force you to buy energy from us that you do not need. There is no risk for you.

This is not a problem. We can either move the solar power system to your new site with you or the new owner of the factory or site can take over from you. Since our solar power system will save energy expenses for the future buyer, you may even be able to get a higher sales price with our system than without.

When you work with us, we offer you a simple, zero up-front cost way to benefit from cheaper solar energy. We are experienced and our solar power systems are tried and tested. Because we will own and operate the solar systems ourselves, we will never compromise on quality.

Working with us, means you need to deal with only one party, Nvision.Energy. We deliver a turn-key, hassle free solution.

We have over a decade of experience with commercial and industrial scale solar system. We have built the exact same solar systems before and we own and operate our own solar systems across frontier and emergin markets in Africa, Europe and the Middle East.

GET STARTED

The way to your own solar energy system only takes a few simple steps outlined below.

1. Free solar auditOnce you contact us, we will arrange a free on-site consultation with you. Together with you, our team will gather all necessary information so that we can make you a firm offer for your own solar power system. We will review your energy needs and determine which type of system fits those needs best. We will also have a look at your roof and other suitable areas for the installation of the system so that we can complete a preliminary design.

2. Preliminary design and firm offerNext our engineers get to work. With the information from the on-site consultation we produce a preliminary design for your solar power system. Based on this preliminary design we will make a firm offer to you. In this firm offer we will specify the type, power, size and location of the solar power system we offer you. The offer will set out the solar rate, your purchase options and the savings the system will generate for you.

3. Sign your solar agreementAfter you accept our firm offer, we will conclude a solar agreement with you. Our standard agreement is a simple, one page agreement that is based on industry standards and adapted to your local market where needed. In parallel to this we will also complete our financial due dilligence to approve your project with our credit committee.

4. Design and permitting workOnce the solar agreement has been signed, we complete the detailed design of the solar plant down to every screw and cable. We will obtain all, if any, necessary permits and licenses for the installation of the plant.
Lastly we will order and ship all components of the solar power system to your site and agree on an installation date with you.

5. Installation and commissioningThe installation of the solar system is fast. Captive and net-metering systems under 400 kW can usually be installed and commissioned by our team in under a week, off-grid systems take a few days longer. During the installation we make sure that we create minimal nuisance for you and do not get in the way of your work.

6. Pay less for your energyWhen the solar power system is commissioned it is time for you to flick the switch. From this moment onwards, whenever the sun shines you will be getting cheaper, clean solar energy from us.
You can check on your savings and solar energy consumption online, on your mobile and, of course, on-site. Every month we will send you a detailed report of the solar production and your savings.

7. Monitoring and maintenanceWe monitor all of our solar power systems 24/7 to make sure everything is running smoothly. Our solar power systems are extremely robust and reliable and require minimal maintenance. When something needs attention, we dispatch a maintenance and repair team.
If you like, we will also, free of charge, monitor your overall energy consumption for you. That way we can help you spot trends and changes in your energy consumption and identify opportunities for further savings.